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Chapter 36
September 8th
Cato’s point of view
At lunch on Wednesday, I was sitting with Elias when Jess appeared, her eyes tearing up.
“Cato, I need to talk to you,” she said, her voice shaking.
I got straight to my feet and grabbed her hand. The cafeteria was crowded and noisy, so we walked down the hall. As we passed the girl’s bathroom, she paused and pulled me in.
“In here,” she said.
The room was empty, but I didn’t have long to admire the cleanliness compared to the boy’s before she bundled me into a stall.
“Would the playing fields have sufficed?” I asked, standing less than a foot away from her in the tiny space.
She shook her head and sat on the lid of the toilet, running her hands through her hair.
“I’ve missed my period, Cato,” she said.
As I processed her words, I fixated my eyes on her.
“I’m a week late an
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